The Union Human Resource Development Minister’s announcement of a higher cutoff percentage in Class XII to (gain) secure admission to the prestigious Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) had created a furore across the country.
The minister subsequently retracted his statement, but the issue triggered a debate. Although the cutoff for admissions to IITs today remains at 60 per cent in Class XII, many students feel raising the bar will definitely be better.
Nearly five lakh students are expected to appear for JEE 2010 for 9,000 seats in 15 IITs this year. With a low cutoff percentage in class XII, students hitherto focussed entirely on cracking the JEE. This has paved the way for coaching centres to play a significant role in the preparation process.
Nanda Kumar, Class XII student of the Bishop Cotton Boys’ School (BCBS) in Bangalore, feels that coaching centres create a hype by advertising that preparations for IIT need to start from class VIII.
“The syllabus for IITJEE is of a higher level. Students will have to concentrate on Class XII examinations along with preparations for other entrance tests”.
Coaching centres
Besides, the coaching centers are benefited as the students are under the pressure of taking multiple entrance tests. They charge IIT aspirants anywhere between Rs 40,000 and Rs 1.2 lakh per year.
Parents are ready to shell out the tuition fee as they want the best for their wards. Devesh Agarwal, a student, says, “Some coaching centers advertise that IIT, JEE preparations need to begin from class VIII, during which students are most vulnerable and indecisive about their career.”
Shreecharan, another Class XII student, adds that apart from JEE, there are the All India Engineering Entrance Examination(AIEEE), Common Entrance Test (CET) and institutions like BITS-Pilani which conduct separate entrance tests for admissions to the top colleges.
“For medical courses, apart from the All India Pre-Medical Test (AIPMT), the top medical institutions like Christian Medical College(CMC) Vellore conduct their own entrance tests. Medical seat aspirants require to prepare themselves with extensive research in addition to securing good percentage in Class XII,” says Shreecharan.
Panacea
A higher cutoff for IITs enables students with capabilities to stand a greater chance in taking up the entrance test than an average student. Many Bishop Cotton Boys’ Schoolstudents share the same view.
A nationalised common entrance test for all professional graduate courses on the lines of SAT conducted in the United States, is the need of the hour, they said.
The preparation for the multiple entrance examinations makes students divert their attention from the main Class XII examinations.
Mercy Jacob, Vice Principal, Bishop Cotton Boys’ School asserts that a higher cutoff would separate average students from going through the pressure of preparing for tough entrance tests.
“Engineering and medical courses are not the only career options that students need to be prepared for,” she opined.
About five lakh students are expected to appear for IIT JEE 2010
In 2005, a committee was set up by the Joint Admission Board to review the JEE
SAT Reasoning Test is a standardized test for college admissions in the United States.
“A national CET for medical and engineering courses would enable students to prepare well. With 60 pc cut off, students tend to pay more attention to IIT JEE .”
Nanda Kumar
“The entrance tests preparation exerts tremendous pressure on students. An average student is forced into aiming for premier institutions as coaching centres promise rigorous preparation. Mercy Jacob
“Excelling in class XII examination is crucial, as students can venture into other career options with a good percentage. I have opted for the Common Law Admission Test (CLAT) 2010 ”.
Nimit Dixit
“With a single CET, concentration on Class XII examination increases, and students can also focus on other extra curricular activities, required for personality development”.
Aaron Julius Punnen
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